No Good Deed
by Idinagleek
Summary: Shelby Corcoran had it all. After nine years, she was at the height of her Broadway career, and she had never been happier. But when the tabloids reveal her biggest secret, her world comes crashing down around her.
1. Chapter 1

…

The first time Shelby Corcoran ever stepped foot in the Big Apple, she knew she could never go back to a small town life. There was something that was so electric about New York that made her soul sing. From the constant movement all around her, to the bright lights, the food, the people. It truly was the place where people came to make their dreams come true. And she was determined to do just that from the moment she arrived nine years ago. And she did.

Her first couple of years in New York, she had landed some roles in small off-Broadway productions, before landing a supporting role in _Rent. _She had even earned herself her first Tony nomination for her portrayal of Maureen Johnson. After that she did a couple more off-Broadway gigs, put out some albums, was dropped from her label, and was in a bit of a slump for a couple of years, unable to find work.

But then it came, her big break. She had landed the leading role of Elphaba in the new Broadway musical, _Wicked. Wicked _had officially been on Broadway for a couple of months now, and it was taking the great white way by storm. The reviews were spectacular, and the Tony buzz that was surrounding the show was amazing. Shelby was back on top and she truly had never been happier. Her hard work was finally paying off and she had it all.

Well, she _almost _had it all.

As happy as Shelby was in her life and her career, there was something missing, something that would always be missing. The entire reason she was even able to come to New York in the first place and make a name for herself was because of what she had given up, what she had walked away from.

Her beautiful baby girl.

Nine years ago, Shelby had finally graduated college and was ready to make her way to New York and start her life. But her parents were less than supportive, constantly telling her that show business was going to lead her down a path of rejection and disappointment. But Shelby ignored them and applied for jobs anyways, knowing she couldn't even attempt to make it in the concrete jungle without a steady income. But after months and months of turning out with nothing, Shelby had started to feel hopeless.

And then she answered an Ad in the paper. Nine months of work could pay for her to live in New York for two years. Two years was plenty of time to get herself established and start earning an income, so Shelby greedily applied.

When Shelby had first met with Hiram and LeRoy Berry, she had immediately taken a liking to them. They were warm, kind, and praised her for her beauty and her talent and encouraged her to follow her dreams, pushed her even. So when they asked her to carry a child for them, it only felt right to say yes. Who was she to deny two wonderful men a chance at starting a family when they were willing to give her a chance at starting a career?

The first couple of months of the pregnancy were easy. She dealt with morning sickness, insomnia, and was all around miserable, even with the two men constantly doting on her. It made it easy for her to detach herself from the baby that was making her so miserable. But then she started showing, and Shelby would catch herself lovingly stroking her protruding belly. And then they found out it was a girl, and then the baby kicked for the first time. And by eight months Shelby found herself falling in love with the child growing inside of her.

The Berry men had noticed Shelby's growing attachment to the child she was carrying, and one day they approached her asking her to sign a contract relinquishing all parental rights and promising not to contact the girl until she was at least eighteen. Shelby signed it no questions asked. She knew the men weren't being malicious. They were just protecting themselves. After so many failed attempts at trying to start a family, they wanted to make sure they got it right this time.

And then her daughter was born, and she was beautiful. One of the most beautiful babies Shelby had ever seen. She only saw her for a second, but that single second was enough to get her through some of the most trying times in her life. She held onto that second and held it dearly in her heart.

After Shelby was cleaned up by the doctors, a tearful Hiram and LeRoy had come over to voice their thankfulness, handed her an envelope, took her beautiful baby out of the room, and left.

So, Shelby packed her bags the next day and never looked back. That's not to say it wasn't hard. It was the hardest thing she had ever done. She almost didn't go, too overcome with grief. But then giving up her daughter would have been for nothing. So she went. She thought about her daughter every single day. Constantly wondering what she looked like, what her name was, if she inherited any of Shelby's talent. She missed her, but she was forever grateful to her daughter for the doors in which she opened for her.

But she missed her.

…

It was a Tuesday morning and Shelby was walking towards the Gershwin Theatre with an extra pep in her step. The air, though still slightly chilly, was finally starting to turn warm. The sun was shining, and it was gorgeous outside, and Shelby couldn't wait to get to the theatre and start getting ready for the show tonight. As she rounded the corner, she rolled her eyes at the dozens of paparazzi that were milling around outside by the stage door. The closer it got to the Tony nominations being announced, the more the paparazzi seemed to be lurking around. She walked past them nonchalantly, ignoring their shouts asking her if she thought she would be nominated, giving occasional smiles to the flashing cameras. She reached for the door, but was stopped dead in her tracks when a pap off to her side called out, causing her blood to run cold.

"Shelby! Is it true that you have a daughter?"

Oh, fuck.

…

"LeRoy!" Hiram Berry hissed, gently shutting the door behind him as to not wake their sleeping child. "LeRoy, get over here!"

LeRoy Berry slowly made his way over to his husband, passing him a cup of coffee before taking a generous gulp of his own. "Hiram, I'm too tired to deal with any more dramatics tonight." He sighed. "What is it?"

"Have you happened to check the news at all in the past couple of hours, or even happened a glance at any social media?" Hiram asked.

"No?" LeRoy said confused, "We've been pretty busy today." He said, raising an eyebrow, indicating to the door behind his husband.

"Well check!" Hiram all but screeched.

"Alright, alright." He conceded, pulling his phone out of his back pocket. "What website am I supposed to be looking at again?"

"Oh, I'm sure any site will have this particular article front and center." Hiram said bitterly.

LeRoy rolled his eyes at his husband's dramatics and pulled up his Facebook, his eyes going wide at the dozens of post all linking the same article. "What the hell?" He asked, looking up to his husband. "What is this?"

"I don't know." Hiram answered honestly. "But I don't think it was Shelby."

"No. Of course it wasn't. Shelby would never do that to us." LeRoy said.

LeRoy glanced back down at the headline that seemed to be mocking him. 'Broadway's biggest star's best kept secret, her nine year old daughter.'

Hiram sighed and leaned against the wall. "What are we going to do LeRoy? We can't let Rachel see anything of this before we talk to her, and I don't think we should talk to her until we can talk to Shelby."

"Well, I don't know how you plan on talking to Shelby. We tried getting in touch with her three years ago and all of her contact information had been changed."

"I don't even understand how this got out." Hiram sighed. "Rachel is going to lose her shit when she finds out."

LeRoy chuckled, knowing his husband was right. Their little diva was the spitting image of Shelby. She walked like Shelby, talked like Shelby, sang like Shelby. So it was only natural that she was just as obsessed with broadway as her mother was. And because of that, it only made sense that Rachel currently idolized Broadway's biggest star, Shelby Corcoran.

When _Wicked _had first started it's run on Broadway, Rachel had _begged _them to take her to see it. She had read countless articles on all of the broadway blogs, and she had fallen in love with the fact that the leading lady was from a small town and was also Jewish, just like her. She quickly became enthralled in Shelby, idolizing her and her every move. Hiram and LeRoy had shot down her request to see _Wicked _quickly, much to the girl's dismay. But that didn't stop her from buying everything related to _Wicked _and Shelby.

"Yeah, she really is." LeRoy said. "Remember when she told us she wanted to be just like Shelby when she grew up?" He asked, chuckling.

Hiram laughed. "I so badly wanted to tell her that she already was just like Shelby." He said, his smile quickly fading into a frown and his face settling into a guilty expression.

"Don't." LeRoy said. "We've been over this. We didn't do anything wrong, and we tried to reach out to Shelby. We really did. There is only so much we can do."

This had been an area of discussion many times for the men. The older Rachel got, the more evident it became she could use a womanly figure in her life. They knew how much Shelby had loved the girl, and they had started to feel guilty for turning her away from her child. They had tried to reach out, but were only ever met with dead ends.

"I know." Hiram said sadly. "I just hope Rachel doesn't hate us when she eventually finds out."

"Yeah," LeRoy agreed. "Me too."

…

"How the _fuck _did they find out?" Shelby seethed shooting her manager a nasty look through her dressing room mirror. "As far as I know only four people in the entire world know about my daughter, two of which are sitting in this room, April! It wasn't you, it wasn't me, and I know it wasn't her fathers', so who the _fuck _was it?"

The short blonde winced at Shelby's sharp tongue, and Shelby felt bad. The short, spitfire blonde was more than just her manager, she was also her best friend.

Shelby had met April Rhoades her first year living in New York City when they had both auditioned for the same role. They bonded over the fact that neither one of them got it, and the director had critiqued both of their appearances. When Shelby's career started to sky rocket, April had already given up her Broadway dreams, and instead decided to work with the stars. Shelby quickly hired her as her manager, and to this day had no regrets.

"I'm sorry April. I'm just so fucking confused as to how this got out." Shelby said, reaching for the green makeup.

"Apparently the doctor's office you went too with Hiram and LeRoy during your pregnancy was getting remodeled. They hired someone to come in and shred all of the paperwork from old patients who weren't seeing them anymore. Well, whoever was shredding the files saw your name and took pictures of the documents and sold it to the tabloids." April said quickly.

"Son of a bitch!" Shelby yelled, throwing the makeup across the room. "Those files are supposed to be kept confidential."

"I know." April said, ducking so she didn't get hit in the head. "I'm working on getting the name of the person who sold the information, once I do I'll be pressing charges."

"I don't even care about that." Shelby said, dropping her head into her hands, debating on telling her understudy to get into makeup. "Hiram and LeRoy, their names are going to come out eventually, and my daughter, I just, I don't want to cause any upheaval in their life. There was a contract put into place for a reason." She sighed.

"I know, Shelbs." April said softly, coming to sit next to her. "I've found both of their email addresses'. I've sent them both an email with your contact information. That way the three of you can decide how you want to go about this." She said. "I know you all will have her best interests at heart, and if we work together and get ahead of the press, we can manage this."

Shelby nodded glumly and sat back in her chair. Her daughter was only nine years old. The last thing she wanted to do was to throw her in the middle of a media frenzy.

"Can you go tell Paul that Jackie needs to go in for me tonight? I'm not in the right headspace to perform."

"Of course." April said, going to get up.

"Can you also take me home when you're done? I walked here today and I don't want to be swarmed by the paparazzi walking home."

April smiled and gave her a slight nod before leaving Shelby to herself.

She threw herself back into her chair and finally let her tears of frustration fall. Of course something like this would happen at the height of her career. She should have known better than to finally let herself be happy. Now, instead of being excited about the prospect of an upcoming Tony nomination, Shelby had to figure out a way to tell her parents and sister that she had a daughter. She had to figure out a way to make it up to her daughter for throwing her life into an upheaval. She had to figure out a way to explain to Hiram and LeRoy that she had nothing to do with this, that she would never intrude on their family like this.

Shelby was pulled from her thoughts by her cell phone ringing. Unsurprising, as it had been ringing all day since the news hit the tabloids. But what was surprising was that it was an unknown number calling from Lima.

Shelby gulped, knowing exactly who it was on the other end of the phone. She took a deep breath and calmed her nerves before placing the phone up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Shelby? Is that you?"

Hiram Berry's voice sounded exactly like she had remembered it. Warm and loving.

"Yeah, it's me." Shelby responded. "I take it you got my managers email?"

"We did." Hiram confirmed. "I'm sorry for calling without warning, but I figured this was something that couldn't wait."

"I'm so sorry, Hiram." Shelby sighed. "I hope you know I had nothing to do with this. I would never do that to you guys. Ever."

"Oh, Shelly, we know that." Hiram said, using her old nickname. "We would never question your character. And your manager explained through the email how this all came out." He said. We've actually been trying to get into contact with you long before this whole thing erupted." He paused. "We want you to be apart of her life, Shelby. We were wrong to keep you away."

Shelby felt tears welling in her eyes and she had to clear her throat before speaking again. "Really?"

"Yes." Hiram said clearly. "To keep you away from Rachel was wrong. She is your child, and we should have never separated the two of you. But we were selfish. And I'm sorry."

"Rachel." Shelby breathed. Her heart bursting with joy at finally knowing her daughter's name. "How is she? Is she okay?"

"She is your spitting image, Shelby. She could be your clone. And not only does she look like you, but god does she act like you." He laughed. "She's also quiet the fan of yours. She owns all of your CD's and has probably watched YouTube videos of you performing hundreds of times."

Shelby laughed and found herself being filled with giddiness at the fact that her daughter liked her music. "You know, a couple of my songs-

"Are about Rachel." He finishes for her. "We know, and we love them."

Shelby smiled her first genuine smile since shit hit the fan a couple hours ago. This could work. She could be a part of her daughters life, and they could be a family. She can finally, truly, have it all.

"I'm sure my manager also mentioned to you that it's best if we get ahead of this media frenzy." Shelby started, continuing when Hiram hummed a confirmation. "I can fly you guys out, all of you. And I can meet Rachel, and the three of us can work together on a statement and then I can take Rachel to see the show and backstage, and then,"

"Shelby," Hiram said softly, cutting her off. "As wonderful as that all sounds, we can't come to New York."

"Oh." Shelby said, her heart dropping. "Does she not want to meet me?"

"Oh, no. She very much so wants to meet you. Granted she doesn't know that _you _are her mom, but she's always wanted to meet her mother." Hiram started. "We were waiting to talk to you before telling her about you, now that I have, I'll probably drop the bomb tomorrow that _the _Shelby Corcoran is her mom." He teased, but Shelby could sense a shift in his voice.

"If you don't mind my asking, why can't you guys come to New York? If it's because of work and school I can book you guys a Friday night flight that returns Sunday evening?" She said. "I really want to meet her. There's not a day that goes by where I don't think of her."

Hiram sighed, and Shelby braced herself for the no that was coming. "Rachel can't fly right now." He said.

"Oh?"

"Shelby there's no easy way to tell you this, and I hate that it has to be over the phone. And before I do tell you, please know that as soon as LeRoy and I found out, we tried everything we could to get in touch with you."

Shelby felt her heart rate pick up, a feeling of panic setting in that she had never felt before. "Hiram, what's going on?"

"Shelby, Rachel has cancer."

And just like that, Shelby's world once again came crashing down around her.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello everyone! Thank you for all the love. I'm so excited to see where this story goes. Enjoy the chapter!

…

For the last nine years, whenever Shelby imagined her daughter, she pictured a beautiful little girl. She would have olive skin and dark hair, hazel eyes and a wide smile. In some scenarios she would be athletic and strong, in others she would be a ballerina. In her dreams she was always smiling and laughing, and that's what would get Shelby through the rough days of missing her daughter, was knowing she was loved, happy and healthy.

Never once, in _any _of Shelby's daydreams was her daughter frail, sick, weak, _dying. _But looking at her daughter through the tiny window leading into the young girl's room, Shelby felt all of her hopes and dreams for her daughter shatter around her.

It wasn't until she felt LeRoy's strong arms pull her in for a hug that Shelby realized she was sobbing loudly. "I'm sorry." She cried into his chest. "I'm sorry."

LeRoy didn't respond, choosing instead to lead Shelby over to a row of chairs, sitting them down, and holding her.

"All the years I wondered what she looked like, and I would picture this beautiful, happy little girl." Shelby said softly a couple minutes later. "I never once thought she would be sick." She cried. "How did this happen?"

"Why don't we wait until Hiram gets here, okay? We can go over everything then."

"Okay." Shelby said softly.

In all fairness, she hadn't given the men much notice about coming. After her first initial phone call with them, she had let her director of the show know she was taking a few days off, went home and packed a bag and headed to the airport. Letting April know she was leaving, and for now was not making a statement to the press, and texted LeRoy she was getting on the first flight to Lima before shutting her phone off and she hadn't turned it back on since.

Shelby felt LeRoy stand, and glanced upwards, seeing Hiram walking in their direction.

"Shelby." Hiram said warmly, and Shelby stood, gladly stepping into his comforting embrace, feeling another round of tears at the back of her eyes.

When Shelby pulled away, Hiram cupped her face and smiled lovingly. "Still as beautiful as ever I see."

Shelby laughed and brushed away her tears, realizing for the first time in nine years that she not only missed her daughter, but she missed Hiram and LeRoy too.

"I've missed both of you." Shelby said softly when they settled around a nearby table.

"We've missed you too, Shelbs." LeRoy said, reaching across the table to take her hand in his own. "And we both want you to know how sorry we are for writing up that contract. We never meant it maliciously, we were just being selfish."

"It's okay." Shelby said earnestly. "I was never angry at either of you. I knew my daughter was in amazing hands. You two deserved to be parents more than anyone I knew, and I was more than happy to provide you with that." She said with a watery smile.

Both of the men squeezed her hands and they fell into a comfortable silence.

"LeRoy said you got to see Rachel earlier?" Hiram started gently.

Shelby nodded, her throat suddenly tight. "Yeah, I did. Through the window."

"Would you like to see a picture of her before she got sick?" Hiram asked softly.

Shelby nodded and greedily reached for the phone that Hiram held. She let out a soft sob when she took in the young face that looked so much like her own. Rachel was the spitting image of all of Shelby's dreams. From the long hair and olive skin, to the toned, athletic body. She was smiling from ear to ear, one of her front teeth missing, holding up a dripping ice cream cone.

"She looks just like you." LeRoy said after a minute. "She acts like you too."

Shelby smiled and wiped her eyes, handing the phone back to Hiram before meeting both of their eyes.

"How bad is it?" She asked, her voice shaking.

LeRoy sighed, and glanced at Hiram, signaling for his husband to take the lead.

"Rachel has Leukemia." He started. "She goes through chemotherapy twice a week. It was working for awhile, but the last couple of weeks, things have taken a turn for the worse. Her doctor thinks a stem cell transplant is her best bet, but neither LeRoy or I are a match, so she's on the donor list, and until then, she'll continue the chemo and hope for the best." He said sadly. "She's been in the hospital for close to two weeks now. We pulled her from school two months ago because kids were making fun of her for losing her hair. We're trying to keep her up to date on work and assignments, but if she makes it, I'm almost positive she'll have to repeat a grade."

Shelby flinched at the _if _in Hiram's sentence, not wanting to think about her baby girl not being on this earth anymore. Hiram seemed to notice Shelby's discomfort and immediately grasped back onto her hand. "I'm sorry, that was inconsiderate of me. LeRoy and I have had time to process all of this, and you haven't. Rachel is strong and I believe in miracles, but we also know we have to prepare for the worst."

Shelby nodded along, trying to wrap her head around all of this information. "I want to meet her doctor."

"Of course." LeRoy said soothingly. "She'll be here in a couple hours."

"I want to see if I'm a match for Rachel, for the stem cell transplant."

Both of the men sat silently, taking in Shelby's words before LeRoy spoke up. "Shelby, you don't have to do that. Think of your career. You'd be out of work for at least a week and a half, on top of the time off you're already taking now. You can't do that, especially now, you're about to get a Tony nomination!"

"I don't care about the show." Shelby said fiercely. "If it weren't for Rachel, I wouldn't even have a career. Everything I've ever done has been for her, always. That's not going to change now. I'm here mother and she will always be my top priority."

The men smiled and glanced at each other, knowing they made the right choice of letting Shelby into Rachel's life.

"She's a big fan of yours, you know." Hiram said lightly.

"Does she know? I mean, have you told her yet?"

"Yes and no." LeRoy started. "We told her we found her mother and that you wanted to meet her, but that was pretty much the extent of the conversation, she got sick shortly after and then fell asleep, and now you're here."

Shelby nodded, wringing her hands nervously. "Do you want me to go to my hotel until you have a chance to talk to her?"

"Absolutely not." Hiram said. "You can stay, and when Rachel wakes up we can all go in there together and talk to her. And while you're waiting for her to wake, you can go ahead and cancel your hotel reservations, you can stay with us."

Shelby smiled and sat back in her chair, the exhaustion of the day catching up with her. "Okay."

The next couple of hours were filled with the Berry men telling stories of Rachel growing up, and Shelby was caught between feeling upset that she had missed so many milestones, and happy that she was getting to hear about them. She was shown videos of her little mini me singing and dancing, and Shelby couldn't help but fill with pride knowing her little girl had inherited her talent.

During a lull in conversation, Hiram stood to go check on Rachel, leaving just LeRoy and Shelby.

"I just want to warn you, the chemo has made Rachel even more moody and emotional than she already was. So if she lashes out or doesn't seem over eager or excited when you two meet, please don't take it to heart." He said gently. "She has always talked about wanting to meet her mom and I know she wants you to be in her life more than anything."

"I understand. I can't imagine what she must be feeling or going through."

"Honestly, I think our biggest concern is going to be her getting over the fact you're her broadway idol." LeRoy chuckled.

"Give it a week and I bet she'll realize I'm just another boring, uncool mom." Shelby joked back.

"She's awake." Hiram called quietly from behind them. "Are you ready?"

Shelby stood, expecting to feel nervous, but was surprised when all she felt was calm. She was ready to be reunited with her daughter.

Shelby followed Hiram, allowing him to take the lead, with LeRoy bringing up the rear. Hiram gently opened up the door and poked his head in, making sure his daughter was decent.

"Sweetheart?" He called stepping in. "Daddy and I have someone we'd like you to meet."

Shelby took this as her cue and stepped into the room, locking eyes with her daughter for the first time in nine years. "Hi, Rachel."

Rachel took in Shelby, her eyes going wide, before she promptly burst into tears.

"It's happening isn't it?" She cried, LeRoy and Hiram rushing to her side. "I'm dying."

"Baby," Hiram said, rubbing soothing circles on his daughter's back, "what are you talking about?"

"My make-a-wish was to meet Shelby Corcoran and now she's here. You only get your make-a-wish if you're about to die." She wailed. "You promised you would tell me if I was going to die."

Shelby stood in the shadows of the room, her heart aching at seeing her daughter so upset.

"Sweetheart you are not dying." LeRoy said calmly. "Shelby isn't here because of make-a-wish. Shelby is here because she's your mom." He said, deciding to rip the band aid off.

This seemed to send Rachel even further into hysterics, and she started hyperventilating. "I'm going to be sick." She said.

Hiram reached back, looking for the basin that was usually present on the side table, but found it empty. "LeRoy where's the basin?" He asked, both men standing up frantically searching for it.

"Daddies, I'm going to be sick!" Rachel said more urgently.

Shelby watched as the little girl's body started heaving, and motherly instincts took over. She quickly stepped forward, cupping her hands, catching most of the bile in them. Rachel looked up once she was finished, her pale cheeks turning a shade of pink.

"Better?" Shelby asked gently, smiling softly when the girl nodded.

Shelby stood and walked over to the sink, shooting Hiram a grateful smile for turning it on for her while LeRoy comforted Rachel.

"You're a natural already." Hiram said before walking towards the bed.

Shelby took her time washing her hands, taking a moment to compose herself, before turning back towards the trio huddled around the bed.

"Rachel, I'm sure you have a lot of questions right now, and we are all here to answer all of them." Hiram started, motioning for Shelby to join them on the foot of the bed. "If you need space we will give you space, If you want Shelby to leave for a little bit, she can leave. If you want daddy and I to leave, we can leave. Whatever you need, baby." He cooed.

Rachel nodded, not taking her eyes off of Shelby. "I don't have any questions." She said calmly. "You already explained to me you had me through a surrogate, so Shelby was your surrogate." She stated. "I'm surprised I haven't seen it before, honestly. We both are very talented, and have incredible bone structure, it only makes sense that you would be my mother. You carry the same star power that I have. It's clear where I got my talent from, as it's _obvious _that it wasn't from either of these two." Rachel said, shooting her fathers' a glare. "By the way, daddies' I'm not happy with the two of you for keeping this information from me. And if I'm not dying yet, why would you drag Shelby all the way here, especially right before Tony nominations? And why are you here?" She asked, turning to Shelby. "Didn't you have a show tonight? Don't you have one tomorrow? Sorry for puking in your hands earlier, I'm highly embarrassed that I would do such a thing in front of a broadway super star."

Shelby blinked, trying to take in everything that was just thrown at her. How the fuck did Rachel talk so fast? She caught LeRoy's eyes, which seemed to be silently reminding her of their earlier conversation. Rachel wasn't seeing her as her mother right now, she was seeing her as Broadway royalty.

"Uhm, I." Shelby started, trying to get her bearings. "Your dads' didn't drag me here, Rachel. I wanted to come, I wanted to meet you, I've missed you."

Rachel cocked her head to the side in confusion. "How can you miss someone you've never met?" She asked innocently.

"Well, I carried you in my stomach for nine months." Shelby started, hoping to remind Rachel that she was more than just a broadway star. "And I've loved you since the moment I found out I was pregnant with you, and I have thought about you every single day for the last nine years."

"So much so that you're missing your shows for me, when you're about to be nominated for a tony?"

Shelby gently reached forward and grabbed her daughters hand, feeling tears spring to her eyes at the fact that she was touching her child for the first time in nine years. "If I had to choose between being a Tony winner or being your mom, I would choose being your mom every single time. Nothing is more important to me than you. No matter where we go from here, that's one thing I always want you to know."

Rachel looked at her, once again cocking her head, Shelby's words finally seeming to click in her head.

"So, you're Shelby Corcoran," she started slowly, "but you're also my mom, like my actual mom?" She asked nervously.

"Right." Shelby said, nodding softly.

"Are you only here because I'm sick?" She asked self consciously.

"No." Shelby replied honestly. "I've always wanted to meet you."

"Then why did it take you nine years to meet me?"

"Well," Shelby started, nervously glancing at Hiram and LeRoy, wondering how much they had told the girl. She didn't want to throw them under the bus if they hadn't told her about the contract, but she also didn't want to start out her relationship with Rachel lying to her.

"Honey," Hiram jumpin in, "it's our fault that Shelby hasn't met you before today. What she said earlier was true, Shelby has always loved you deeply from the day she found out she was pregnant." He cleared his throat, reaching over for his husband's hand. "Your father and I also loved you so much, and we were very selfish. We had a couple surrogates before you that didn't work out and we were crushed. We didn't want that to happen again, so we asked Shelby to sign a contract that gave up her parental rights, meaning she couldn't contact you until you were eighteen." He said. "I know this is probably very confusing for you Rachel, but we all love you and we all are here for you."

Rachel nodded and rested her head back on her pillow, taking in the three adults, her three parents, sitting in front of her.

"If you loved me so much, why would you give me up so easily?"

"_Because _I loved you so much." Shelby answered simply. "I know you may not understand that now, but one day when you're older you will. I wouldn't have been able to provide you the life your fathers' did. I was a broke twenty two year old, and I knew your fathers' could provide you with more than I ever could."

"Okay." Rachel said simply.

Shelby let out a sigh of relief smiling at both of the Berry men, before finally feeling how exhausted she was, she hadn't slept in over twenty four hours.

"Shelbs, why don't you run to the house and get a couple hours of sleep?" LeRoy said, seeing the exhaustion setting in on the woman's face. "I'll give you a key and you can come back later and meet Rachel's doctor."

"Yeah," Shelby agreed easily and stood up. "I'll bring back lunch on my way. Just text me what you guys want and I'll get it."

"Perfect." Hiram said, standing up to walk her out,

Shelby hovered over the bed, not suring how to say goodbye to Rachel, before finally leaning down and placing on tender kiss on the girl's forehead. "I'll see you later, babe." She said softly, before turning and heading out the door.

…

"It hurts." Rachel groaned a couple minutes after Shelby had left the room.

"What hurts, darling?" LeRoy asked, sitting down beside her and taking her hand.

"Everything." Rachel cried, a single tear slipping down her cheek. "Everything hurts."

"Rachel," LeRoy scolded lightly, pushing the nurses button. "Why didn't you say anything earlier? You know the best way to handle the pain is to stay ahead of it. Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

Rachel shrugged her shoulders and looked away from LeRoy when realization finally set in.

"Rach, you don't need to be embarrassed in front of Shelby or put on a brave face for her." He said gently. "She loves you for you, and she isn't going to judge you. Did she seem grossed out when you puked in her hands?" He asked, waiting for Rachel to shake her head no before continuing. "You want to know why that is?" He asked, once again waiting for a nod before continuing. "Because she's a mom, your mom. You can be your complete self in front of her and she will love you no matter what. Just like me and daddy."

Rachel nodded and scooted closer to LeRoy, grasping his hand tightly. "But dad, she's Shelby Corcoran, she's legendary, she is everything I want to be one day." Rachel sighed dramatically. "I used to dream she was my mom, I would fantasize about it." She said nervously, glancing up to gauge LeRoy's reaction, continuing when he smiled encouragingly at her. "She's everything I ever dreamed of having for a mama, but it just doesn't seem real."

"It's real, darling. All the excitement and newness will wear off before you know it, and pretty soon, you'll find Shelby just as annoying as daddy and I." He said, chuckling when Rachel rolled her eyes. "Now why don't you rest up, I'm sure when Shelby gets back she'll be more than happy to answer all your broadway questions."

"Okay, I love you dad." Rachel said, already drifting off into sleep.

"I love you too, darling."

…

Shelby knew when she left the hospital that she couldn't go to the Berry's house and sleep, she had other business she had to take care of first. She sighed as her taxi took her down a familiar road and gulped when the driver pulled into the driveway.

Shelby's relationship with her parents had always been strained at best. They never supported her dreams, and even after she had finally made a name for herself, they were still disapproving. Shelby had only seen her parents three times in the last nine years. Opening night of _Rent, _The Tony Awards when she was nominated for best supporting actress and opening night of _Wicked. _She called on major holidays, sent cards for mother's day and father's day, and they called for her birthday, but that was it. They never went in deep conversations, and it was what Shelby had become accustomed too.

But she knew that she had to be here. It was bad enough her parents had probably already heard that they had a granddaughter from the press and not from Shelby herself. On top of that, she had shut her phone off, avoiding the phone calls from them she was sure she was receiving. Shelby had to step up and talk to her parents on more than just a surface level and explain to them why they didn't know their only grandchild. And to add on to their disappointment, she would have to be the one to tell them that their only grandchild was sick.

Shelby stared at the door for five minutes before stepping forward, knowing she would never be fully ready, and now was the best time to get it over with. She knocked gently three times and waited with baited breath, only releasing it once the door swung open.

"Hi mom."

…

I hope you enjoyed this! I have so many great ideas for this story and would love to hear what you all think! I promise there will be more Shelby/Rachel interactions in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks for all the love! Enjoy.

…

Shelby sat at the kitchen table in her childhood home and clutched her cup of tea close to her. Both her father and mother were sitting opposite of her and were staring at her expectantly, but she didn't know where to start.

"Is it true?" Her mother asked, finally breaking the tension. "The things they're saying about you, is it true?"

"Yes." Shelby said curtly.

"Christ Shelby," Her father said, finally chiming in. "What did you do? Get knocked up by some loser and then give your child away?" He seethed. "Why wouldn't you tell us, we could have helped you!"

Shelby shook her head, vowing herself to stay calm. "First of all, you two would have never helped me. Everything I have today, everything I created, everything I am, I did that without the help of you two." She started. "Second, I didn't get pregnant with Rachel by some loser. If you two both can agree to let me talk without interruption, then I will explain."

Shelby saw her mother's face soften at Rachel's name, and her father gave her a slight nod, telling her to continue.

"After I graduated you both know I looked high and low for a job so I could move to New York." She started, both of her parent's nodding along. "I saw an Ad in the paper, and nine months of work would cover me for two years in New York comfortably. I met Hiram and LeRoy Berry, they were a newly married couple looking for a surrogate so they could start a family. They were amazing men, and I knew they would be great parents so I agreed. I lied to you two, and told you I was moving to New York, but I actually moved in with them. Rachel was born December second and I left for the city the next day. I signed a contract before she was born relinquishing all of my parental rights and agreed to not contact her until she turned eighteen."

Shelby eyed both of her parents, waiting for one of them to say something, the air thick with tension.

"That's even worse." Her mother stated coldly.

"Pardon?"

"You sold your own flesh and blood so you could go run off to New York and be irresponsible, how selfish can you be?"

Shelby stood, rage taking over her body. "I am the _furthest _thing from selfish." She shouted, her voice laced with venom. "I gave two loving, caring men something that they couldn't have themselves. I gave Rachel a loving family to grow up in. Everything I have ever done has been for her. So don't you _dare _call me selfish."

"Shelly," Her father said gently, falling easily into his role of peacekeeper between the two hot headed women. "I think your mother is just upset that we have a grandchild we won't get to meet until she's an adult. She's hurting, as am I. She shouldn't have said that, but you've held this secret for nine years, we're just now finding out about it. You can't blame us for being upset."

Shelby squeezed her eyes shut in frustration, counting down backwards from ten before sitting back down. "That's why I'm here, actually. The Berrys have been trying to contact me for a couple of years now, but kept coming up with dead ends. It wasn't until media outlets leaked the story that they were able to track me down and get ahold of me. I just came from seeing Rachel."

"Oh." Her mother said, surprise laced in her voice. "How was it, why didn't you bring her by?"

Shelby had to refrain from laughing at how sweet her mother's voice had turned, already able to tell that while her mom may not have been the most amazing mother, she was going to be one hell of a grandma.

"I don't want to overwhelm her, mom. She actually was a big fan of mine so me being her mother has been a bit of a shock." She started softly. "There's something else though, and there is no easy way to say this, I'm still processing it myself." She said swallowing thickly.

"What is it, Shelly?" Her dad asked, his big eyes sending her over the edge.

"Rachel has leukemia." She choked out before burying her face in her hands and breaking down into sobs.

Shelby heard the scooting of chairs on the floor and soon found herself being wrapped in the arms of both of her mother and father.

"Oh, sweetie." Her mother cooed, stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay. She's going to be okay."

"I just got her in my life, I can't lose her already, it wouldn't be fair." She cried into her dad's chest. "I'm so scared."

"Welcome to motherhood, sweetheart." Her mother said in a tone Shelby wasn't used to. "You're scared all the time, but you have to be brave for her, do you understand that?"

Shelby nodded before detangling herself from her parents and wiping at her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time in the past twenty four hours. "I hate to rush out, but I still need to go over to the Berrys and nap and shower and then pick everyone up lunch." She said, hastily standing up. "I just wanted to talk to you guys, I'm sorry for keeping it from you for so long."

"Shell, slow down." Her father said, gently grabbing her elbow to stop her. "Why don't you stay with us? I promise we won't pester you, and that way you have some time to yourself."

Shelby mulled it over in her head before nodding. "That sounds nice." She said honestly. "Let me go grab my bags from the car and then I'm going to go lie down."

"I'll get the bags, kiddo. Go sleep so you can get back to Rachel."

Shelby smiled at her father and stepped in to give him a hug. "Thank you, daddy."

…

A couple hours later Shelby was showered and slightly more rested and walking back towards Rachel's room with food in tow. She approached Rachel's door and knocked gently before entering, smiling at the sight of her daughter laughing giddly at the funny voices LeRoy was currently doing while reading her a book.

"Hey, superstar. You look much better." Hiram said cheerfully, taking the bags out of Shelby's hands and beginning to pass out food.

"Hey!" Rachel protested. "Superstar is _my_ nickname!"

"Sorry kiddo, but your mom was our first superstar." Hiram teased.

"No fair." Rachel pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Don't worry babe, I'm sure you'll take my throne sooner or later." She said, throwing Rachel a wink before sitting down in the chair next to her.

"You're probably right," Rachel said, averting her eyes, cheek tingeing pink, "I am _very _talented."

Shelby threw her head back and laughed at how much her daughter acted like her, she truly was her mini me. "I don't doubt that for a second."

"Well, Hiram and I are going to enjoy our lunch down in the cafeteria, when we come back up we'll bring Rachel's doctor with us so you can meet her. Text us if you need anything." LeRoy sing songed, walking out the door with Hiram following behind him.

Shelby momentarily panicked, acutely aware that this was the first time she's ever been alone with her daughter.

"So," Rachel began, leaning forward in her bed, "what's it like being on a broadway stage?"

Shelby looked into her daughter's deep brown eyes, and saw the same hopes and dreams in them that once filled her young eyes, and she smiled. She could do this.

"It's like eating the best dessert you've ever had in your entire life for every meal. It's sweet, it's rich, it's incredible. Nothing beats the rush of adrenaline, I couldn't imagine doing anything else."

"Wow." Rachel said breathlessly. "That's even better than what I imagined."

"It's definitely better than all of your wildest dreams, kid. That much I know."

Rachel nodded and took another small bite of her soup. "Did my daddies tell you that I'm a really big fan of yours?" She asked shyly.

"They did." Shelby laughed, wiping her mouth with a napkin. "They told me you have all of my CD's."

Rachel's face lit up, and she quickly shoved her soup into Shelby's hands, reaching down underneath her bed, pulling out a tote bag. "This is my bag full of stuff that makes me happy." She explained, and began pulling things out. "I have all your CD's in here, the _Wicked _and _Rent _original broadway cast recordings, a couple of things you've signed that I got off eBay, and this." She said pulling out a stuffed cow that immediately brought tears to Shelby's eyes. "My daddies said that my mama left this for me in the hospital when I was born, which now I know it was you that left it. But when I got older, guess what I named her?" Rachel said excitedly.

"Hmmm." Shelby pondered, trying to get her emotions in check. "I don't know, tell me."

"Elsie!" Rachel squealed. "It fits even more perfectly now!"

Shelby laughed, immediately connecting the name to her production of _Rent. _"It's perfect." Shelby chuckled. "I'm so happy you still have it."

"It was the only piece of my mama, of you, that I had. I would never get rid of it."

Shelby beamed and reached out to take Rachel's hand. "You're very smart for a nine year old, did you know that?"

"I've been told." Rachel replied matter of factly.

Shelby smiled, and the two spent the next hour getting to know one another. The longer they talked, the more Rachel came out of her shell, and the more Rachel began seeing Shelby as more than just a broadway star. When the two men came back into the room an hour later, they found both mother and daughter lying together on Rachel's tiny bed, flipping through Rachel's playbill collection. Rachel looking up at Shelby with rapt attention as Shelby pointed out different bits and pieces, occasionally singing a snippet of a song quietly.

"Well hello, superstars. You two seemed to have enjoyed your lunch." Hiram said happily. "LeRoy will be up in just a second with Doctor Nelson, Shelby."

"Okay, great." She said, sitting up before placing a kiss atop of Rachel's head. "I think little missy might be in a little bit of pain, but she won't tell me." She said quietly as Rachel studied another playbill. "She was great the first half hour but I noticed her grimacing the last twenty minutes or so."

Hiram nodded glumly before pressing the nurses button on the side of the bed. "She doesn't like the pain medication." He explained softly. "It makes her sick which she doesn't like, and I also think she's trying to put on a brave face right now to impress you."

"I'm sorry," Shelby started

"Don't." Hiram said, holding up his head to silence her. "You're her mother, and she's excited. You have nothing to apologize for."

Shelby nodded and looked towards the door where LeRoy was walking in with a tall brunette.

"Shelby, this is Doctor Nelson. Doctor Nelson, this is Shelby, Rachel's mom."

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm a huge fan of all your work." Doctor Nelson said, extending her hand.

Shelby smiled tightly and briefly shook the woman's hand. "Thanks." She replied curtly. "But I'm really only interested in hearing about Rachel and what I can do to help."

The Doctor nodded before shooting the two Berry men a look. "Perhaps we can move this to my office, Miss Corcoran."

Shelby nodded before following the doctor out the room and down the hallway, being led into a private room with a desk. She sat down opposite of Doctor Nelson, and raised her eyebrows expectantly.

Doctor Nelson settled herself in her chair and shuffled a couple papers before looking up and meeting Shelby's unwavering gaze.

"I'm assuming Hiram and LeRoy have given you a briefing on exactly what is going on with Rachel."

"Yes." Shelby replied confidently. "They did. And I don't need you to break it down for me, I've been researching her illness since they first told me."

Doctor Nelson gave her a warm smile and nodded her head. "Okay, so you know that the chemo hasn't been exactly working the last few weeks for Rachel."

"Yes, and that's why I wanted to speak to you. I want to see if I'm a match for Rachel for the stem cell transplant. If I am, I want to do it."

"Miss Corcoran, that is a very invasive procedure. And if you were to do this, you'd have to take two weeks off at least from work. Something that I know is unheard of in your career, especially during this exciting time in your life."

Shelby shook her head in disbelief. "Your number one concern right now should be about your patient, not my career. Rachel is my child, and I will do anything to make her feel better, I don't give two fucks about my career, and if I had to pick between broadway or Rachel, she would win every single time." She said fiercely. "Now, do your job and get the ball rolling, I expect to be tested no later than tomorrow."

"Yes, Miss Corcoran, my apologies."

Shelby gave her one more once over before standing and leaving the room, not yet heading back towards Rachel. She had business to attend too.

…

Shelby returned to Rachel's room a little over an hour later and smiled when she saw the younger version of herself sleeping blissfully.

"She was waiting for you, she only just fell asleep." LeRoy said quietly from the chair he was sitting in.

"I'm sorry." Shelby said, never taking her eyes off of Rachel. "I had to take care of a couple things."

"Don't apologize." LeRoy said while getting up, coming to stand next to her. "You're still processing. We understand."

"I spoke to April, my manager." Shelby said, tearing her gaze from Rachel to look LeRoy in the eyes. "If you and Hiram are ready I'd like to prepare a statement tonight so it'll be the first thing people see in the morning."

"Of course, Hiram and I trust you completely, but what's with the sudden rush?"

"I quit." Shelby said simply. "I don't care if I'm a match or not. I need to be here, with her. I'm moving home."

"Shelby," LeRoy started.

"No." She said fiercely. "Don't argue with me about this. It's already done."

"I wasn't going to argue." LeRoy said sincerely. "I was going to tell you what an amazing mom you are."

Shelby smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder. "We better go find Hiram. I need to call April back in an hour."

LeRoy gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze and nodded. "Let's go find him."

…

Two hours later Shelby was staring down at her phone, her finger hovering over the post button.

"Do it, Shelbs. It's perfect." Hiram said encouragingly.

"I know." She agreed. "I just need to read it over one more time."

She looked back down at the photo. It was from earlier today, herself and Rachel were both smiling looking over a playbill, and despite it being taken in a hospital, the joy is obvious in Shelby's face. Her eyes lingered down to the text underneath the photo.

_Nine years ago I gave the two most loving men I have ever met a chance at parenthood. I was a surrogate for Hiram and LeRoy Berry, and the surrogacy resulted in the birth of one Rachel Berry. For nine years I have loved and missed my daughter, but I knew she was in the best hands. I have recently reconnected with my daughter and Hiram and LeRoy, and the love I have for my daughter is something that cannot ever be replaced. Rachel was diagnosed with Leukemia a few years ago, and is fighting every day to get back to the healthy young girl she once was. I'm sharing this with all of you because my family must come first, and in light of recent events, I will be leaving WIcked, effective immediately. I am so grateful for being a part of such an amazing show, and for my incredible fans. But I finally have the role I've always dreamed of; Mom. _

_Myself, and the Berrys ask you respect our privacy during this time. _

_All the love, Shelby. _

Shelby finished reading it, and before she could second guess herself any longer, hit post.

"It's done." She breathed out.

Both Hiram and LeRoy smiled and stood to embrace her.

"Welcome home, Shelbs." Hiram said.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: If any of you follow my other story, then you know that I'm back. I apologize for the delay but I have lots of exciting ideas and can't wait to hear your feedback!

…

It had been exactly two weeks to the day since Shelby had posted that she was leaving Broadway, and exactly two weeks and one hour since Rachel had a full blown meltdown about her mother walking away from the great white way. She couldn't possibly understand how her mother thought she was more special than _Broadway. BROADWAY,_ for crying out loud, was this woman insane? Rachel would kill for the chance to sing on a broadway stage even just once. And here her mother was leaving it all behind for her, because she was sick. Rachel rolled her eyes and huffed, stupid leukemia.

Yes it had been two weeks since her mother had left behind her biggest dreams and moved back home to be closer to her. But it had been one week since they found out that Shelby was a perfect match for her stem cell transplant. Meaning in just a few days time they would both be going under, and everyone would be holding their breath, praying to the heavens this was the big break they had been waiting for.

With the transplant coming up, Rachel had an idea up her sleeve. Something she knew her dad and daddy would never go for, but if she played her cards just right, she really thought that she could swing it. But it all depended on these next few moments.

"It's back on!" Rachel squealed, "Can you all please shut up!"

The chatter in the room immediately died down, and she vaguely heard her daddy gently scold her for her language.

"Jeez, kid. I think you're more excited than I am." Shelby joked lightly, nudging her ribs as she settled down into the tiny bed next to her.

"Shelby, you are about to find out if you are nominated for your first ever, and what could be your last ever, Tony. This is a huge deal. My mother is nominated for a Tony, can you please try to be a little more excited?"

Hiram burst into laughter and threw his arm over LeRoy who was also doubled over in laughter. "Well, if there was ever any doubt about her being your child, I think that just squashed it. She has your dramatics."

Shelby huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, which only made the men laugh harder as Rachel was sitting in the exact same position.

"Can you all be quiet! They're announcing her category!"

A hush fell over the room as they watched Hugh Jackman rattle off the names of the women who were nominated for best leading actress in a musical.

"And lastly, Shelby Corcoran, Wicked."

The room was eerily silent for all of five seconds before it erupted into inaudible cheers and yells. Shelby was still sitting stock still, and vaguely realized that Rachel had thrown her entire body into her arms and was squealing loudly in her ear.

"Congrats, mama! You're a tony nominee, and you are so totally going to win. None of those other actresses are anywhere near as talented as you are!"

"Rachel!" LeRoy scolded, but his smile showed that he agreed with his daughter, even if he refused to say it out loud.

Rachel watched as her dad and daddy both took turns congratulating Shelby, and saw that her mother was still in shock, and she knew it was now or never.

"Mom, Can I be your date to the Tonys?" Rachel asked, effectively ending the celebration, and causing another eerie silence to take over the room. Only this one was much longer than the last, and not nearly as joyful.

…

Shelby rubbed her temples after ending her millionth phone call. Multiple people from her cast, April, and even more surprisingly, her parents had called her to congratulate her on her nomination. As excited as she was, with the bomb Rachel had dropped in the room, she couldn't find it in herself to be genuinely excited when she knew in a few short minutes she had to let Rachel know that neither one of them would be attending the award ceremony. She knew it was going to break her daughter's heart, but she had to put Rachel first. And while Rachel may emotionally think she can go, physically, her body couldn't handle it.

She sighed as she approached her daughter's room and saw Hiram and LeRoy talking frantically in hushed whispers.

"Don't worry you two, I'm here to save the day." Shelby joked humorlessly. "I'll tell her she can't go, and that I won't be going either." She went to open the door, but was quickly intercepted by Hiram.

"Wait." He said, "She's sleeping, and we talked to Doctor Nelson."

Shelby raised an eyebrow and saw that Hiram seemed much more relaxed than LeRoy.

"Okay," She started in confusion, "and what exactly did I miss."

"Doctor Nelson and Hiram don't seem to think it would be a terrible idea if Rachel went." LeRoy said bitterly. "She thinks you both will be fully recovered from the transplant by then and said as long as Rachel's vitals are okay, there's no reason she shouldn't go. She thinks it might actually be good for her, get her spirits up."

Shelby nodded, slowly taking in all the information she was being given. She could see Doctor Nelson's point, but she also understood why LeRoy was so on edge. Rachel was already so sick, something as small as a cold could land her in the ICU, and New York wasn't exactly the most sterile environment.

"It's up to you two, whatever you think is best I will stand by that and support you one hundred percent." Shelby said, not wanting to step on any toes.

"No." LeRoy said sternly. "You have just as much say in this as Hiram and I do. You are her mother Shelby, and not that you needed to, but you have proved yourself to us so much these past few weeks. You have shown that you are truly devoted to that little girl. You are her mother, and you have a say in this too. When we asked you to come back into her life, we meant all in, co-parenting and all. So let's figure this out together."

Shelby smiled and stepped forward to wrap LeRoy into a hug. She didn't realize how badly she needed to hear those words until they were just spoken.

"Well, I think I agree with Doctor Nelson that it could actually be good for her, but I do worry about her catching something as simple as a cold and landing in the ICU. I would love for her to be there with me, I actually would love all of you to be there with me and I could make that happen. But I think we should wait and see until how she is after the procedure before making a definite decision, and I think we should be transparent with Rachel about that as well."

Both of the men smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." Hiram said proudly. "You may be nominated for best leading lady, but I think your best role yet is mom."

Shelby smiled and felt the tension from the day leave her body. "I think so too."

…

Rachel was understandably upset about not getting a definite yes on going to New York, but even she had to admit that it was better than a flat out no, and she was confident that the transplant would be a success and that in a few weeks time she would be boarding a plane to the big apple with her family.

"Hey mom?" Rachel asked a couple days later, waiting for Shelby to look up from the magazine she was flipping through. "Are, are you nervous about tomorrow?"

Shelby immediately put down her magazine and walked over to climb into the bed next to her, opening her arms as she did and Rachel greedily climbed into her warm embrace. She loved her dad and daddy so much, she really did. But not even their hugs ever made her feel this safe and warm. Shelby always smelled like lavender and vanilla, and something else that Rachel could never quite put her finger on. Whatever it was, she wanted to bottle it up and keep it with her forever.

"Of course I'm nervous, I think everyone gets nervous for surgery, no matter how big or small the procedure. There's a lot of unknown in surgery, and that causes a lot of nerves."

Rachel nodded, her mom made a good point, she always seemed to know exactly what to say.

"I guess it's not that I'm nervous, I've had plenty of procedures before, it's just, this one feels…" She trailed off, struggling to find the right word.

"Different?" Shelby finished for her.

"Yeah," Rachel agreed, nodding her head and readjusting her cap when it shifted. " I don't want to get my hopes up too high, but I just have this feeling deep inside that this one might actually work, and I can go back to being normal again. There's so much I want to do with you, and I can't do it while I'm locked in this room." Rachel mumbled sadly.

She felt Shelby readjust them so that she was cradling Rachel like a baby, something that she didn't object too.

"I want you to listen carefully to me, Rach. You are already normal. Just because you are fighting an illness doesn't mean that you aren't normal. And as much as I would love to go out and do things with you, there is nowhere else I would rather be, because I got you. I know you will beat this, I will do everything I possibly can to make sure that you do. And when you do we can go out and do everything you've ever wanted to do and then some. But until then, let's just focus on the now, and that even though we're stuck in this room, at least we're stuck in it together."

Rachel didn't realize she was crying until she felt her mother gently wipe her tears away. "I love you, mama."

"And I love you my baby." Shelby said gently against her head before placing a gentle kiss to it.

"I still wish I wasn't bald." Rachel huffed moodily, only to yelp in surprise as Shelby sat them both up abruptly and started walking, still carrying Rachel. "Uh, mom? Where are we going?"

"I have an idea."

…

A little shorter than normal, but the next chapter is a doozy.


End file.
